


Love you with all my Heart

by UndecidedName



Category: The Lorien Legacies - Pittacus Lore
Genre: Aromantic Eight, Love Confessions, M/M, Platonic Romance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-20
Updated: 2020-07-20
Packaged: 2021-03-05 04:14:55
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,592
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25398250
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/UndecidedName/pseuds/UndecidedName
Summary: Wanted to write a Joveen fic because I love how wholesome the pairing is. I tried going for writing Eight as aromantic in this one, and I think it got out okay.Hope you enjoy!
Relationships: Naveen | Number Eight/John Smith | Number Four
Kudos: 5





	Love you with all my Heart

"Hey, John? What would you do with your life, if we hadn't met?"

John looks back at Naveen with surprise. They've been sitting silently on the pier, hair still dripping wet from countless hours diving into the blue ocean under them. The whole afternoon was spent that way, just the two of them splashing into the cool water, laughing as they raced back onto the pier and jumped off again and again. It's like they were kids again, but this time experiencing the simple joys that they couldn't afford to do growing up. John enjoys living a carefree life, especially with someone like Naveen to hang out with on the occasion they get to see each other.

"I don't think I would be doing stuff like this, Naveen," John flicks his arm, sending droplets of water onto Naveen. He laughs and flicks water back.

"I can't believe how boring you would be without me," says Naveen. "Am I really the only joy in your life? Clearly there must be more."

John smooths his board shorts. He'd only gotten them when Naveen suggested they go diving off the pier today. "Assuming I have more to do in life? Bold statement." He gives his friend a snarky look. "Besides, I'm the only one you call up when you want to do something."

Naveen shrugs. "What can I say? You're the easiest person to talk to."

The both of them chuckle before drifting back to silence. They stare back at the sinking sunset, letting the last rays of sunlight dry them off and warm their skin. For a while, John feels at ease. Whenever he was with Naveen, there's always comfort in the two of them sitting in silent solidarity. Something in his presence gave a comforting sensation, like a fireplace to sit in front of during a cold winter night. He doesn't feel distant or empty, like any other person would. Instead there's this connection that John could sense, as if he knows that Naveen feels content being with him, spending every second they could being together. It's.. refreshing, knowing that this feeling exists. He wishes he could spend more days with Naveen like this.

Then, Naveen speaks up again. "You know, maybe that question was a little weird." He turns himself to face John, the yellow sunlight reflecting off the side of his face. He looks beautiful with the way his emerald eyes glint from the sun. John turns to face him back, curiosity arisen.

"Can I.. ask you something more personal, John?" Naveen frowns. "Why do you agree to hang out with me?"

John furls his eyebrows, confused by the question. Wanting to hang out with Naveen was an obvious answer; they've just talked about it earlier. John doesn't spend much of his time as excitedly as when he's with Naveen. Doing stuff like jumping off the pier wouldn't cross his mind at all, so of course he would agree to being with him. Besides, these kinds of activities are better with a friend, right?

"We just went over that," John says. "I seriously don't do this stuff if no one suggests it. And you're the only one I know who does, and it's been fun every time I agreed to hang."

"I see," Naveen hums. He's quiet for a moment, then speaks up again. "This sounds weird, but for a while, I thought you really wanted to hang out with me."

John blushes in surprise, which Naveen takes notice of. He quickly adds, "I mean that you've taken up every offer I've suggested without fail. Like, you could've told me you had to raincheck last minute or something, but that's never happened. So I thought.." He drifts back to silence, a little embarrassed over the fuss up.

"Well, yeah, I want to hang with you," John responds. "Again, I don't do much. You could call me up at like three a.m. to go to Denny's and I'd still be down for it." His arm starts to burn, so he takes his towel and drapes it over his side facing the sun.

"Yeah, I might be reading into that a little bit much," Naveen blushes from embarrassment. He pouts for a moment, as if he's struggling to find his words. "You remember when we first met, right? At the dog park?"

John thinks back to years ago. He had gotten bored one day, doing nothing but stare lazily at the TV, so he decided to walk his dog, Bernie Kosar, to get some fresh air. They went to a dog park nearby, where Naveen also happened to be jogging at. 

"Yeah, I remember that day. We first met at the dog park, while I was walking Bernie Kosar. You were on a jog, checking out local hotspots one by one, right?"

Naveen nods. "I couldn't believe that you've never been around town despite living here, but I figured it'd be nice for both of us to experience new things here together. I'm not alone exploring, and I got you to get out of the house more!"

"Even if the clock says otherwise," John smirks. Naveen nudges him playfully, guilty of dragging John out of bed late at night just to have fun in the cool night air. No regrets were had, though. At first, John was skeptical of Naveen's friendliness, but eventually became more comfortable with his jovial nature. Being friends with Naveen felt like the best thing that's ever happened in his life.

"Regardless, meeting you seriously made my life go from zero to a hundred. You were always such a cool person to hang with, and no matter what, we've always had a blast every single time. Like, I don't know how we manage that, but whenever we're together, time flies and memories are made in a flash." Naveen snaps his fingers for emphasis. "If I've never met you, I wouldn't know what to do with my life. I don't think I would look forward to every day as much as I do now."

John smiles, warmth growing in his chest from Naveen's words. They were honest and firm, like he meant everything he said. It was almost unbelievable.

"You know, that's a little funny to me," John cocks his head. "To me, you're the one who changed my life for the better. I'm actually stepping outside of my room more, I look forward to every day, and I'm happier more often knowing that I'll see you." He stops himself immediately, worried he worded that a little too forward, but Naveen doesn't seem to notice.

"I look forward to seeing you too!" He beams, like another ray of sunshine emitting a hearty glow. John sighs in relief. How he blissfully ignores John's wording is beyond him, but relieving. Although the cat would come out of the bag sometime.

"But, like, can I ask how have you lived here for so long, yet never bothered to go out? There's so much in this town to explore," Naveen gestures around him. The beach surrounding the pier was a beautiful golden shine. Vendors stood along the pier's wooden deck, cooking a variety of wonderfully smelling snacks. Beyond that is a plethora of local town hot spots ranging from restaurants to parks to shopping centers, all worth checking out. 

John acknowledges this with a solemn glance. He looks at Naveen, who's giving him that eager grin that makes him want to say "yeah, I'll tell you what's going on." It conflicts him, given how his reason isn't worth a whole spiel of info. Telling the gist of it should be enough, though. He takes a deep breath.

"I've lived here for a pretty long time, with people who I used to know. People I loved. But something wasn't clicking for them, I don't know what, so they decided to move somewhere else. That stuff got me pretty sad, so I was in a sort of mopey phase for a while." John explained it bluntly, but it wasn't something to elaborate so much on. People come and go, that's it. Sweet and simple. He could feel Naveen's stare sullen at his words. Honestly, he found himself being sullen too. He keeps talking.

"And then you came along, Naveen. By weird chance or fate or whatever you wanna call it, the day we met turned my life around. I went from soaking in TV sitcoms all day to having fun in the sun all day.. and night. You lit up this town with that beacon personality, and I just.. decided that maybe I can find someone to.." He coughs, "love again."

Silence dawns on both of them, and for a moment, John feels fear crippling himself to the core. He looks at Naveen, who's pondering thoughtfully, his expression furler and focused. What is he thinking, if he heard that last bit? Unlike John’s slip-up earlier, he intentionally mentioned love this time, wondering if he could hint that to Naveen a little discreetly. A part of him is crying like mad for trying to subtly tell Naveen that he loves him, but another part of him is begging that Naveen isn't so dense that it has to be spelled out plain as day. 

"Am I that person you love, John?"

Oh. There it is.

John looks over to see Naveen, genuinely curious with his question. "Yeah..?"

"Like, romantically?"

Oh. There is that.

John nods slowly, seeing Naveen register his answer, expression never changing. Goodness, is he being oblivious right now.

"I had a feeling that you do, though I've never thought I'd have to come out with my own confession on this as well," Naveen comments quietly. He turns his body to face the horizon, staring wistfully. John does the same.

"I'm not someone who gets romance, or how it feels, honestly. I'm one of those strongly platonic people, who work better with understanding friendships and the like. Being romantically involved doesn't really hit me, not the way that people have told me it felt to them."

John feels his heart sink for a moment. Does Naveen not love him that way?

Naveen quickly says, "That's not to say that I don't really love you. I do, John. I sincerely love you. Every day I'm with you, I'm always wishing for more. And, sometimes, I really really wished that you loved me back too." His eyes don't pull away from the sea. John gets a sense that he's afraid to look at him, afraid of his confession too.

John starts to speak up, hoping he can ease Naveen's feelings with his own. "Consider that wish granted, because I have started to really love you, too, Naveen. Even now. I don't think understanding romance is needed to know how much we want to be with each other every day. And honestly, that's all we need right now. I couldn't ask for anything better." He chose his words carefully, hoping that Naveen won't feel bad about not being a romantic person. Just knowing that they really do have feelings for each other, that's more than John could've hoped for.

Naveen smiles, touched by John's words. "You know, that's a great way to put it, John. Because like, as social creatures, we look to spend the rest of our lives with people, if not a special someone whom we cherish the rest of our days," he laments. His gaze falls on their reflections on the water, two sloppy looking teenagers hanging their feet from the edge of the pier. "And I never thought that, as someone who doesn't feel that 'romantic feeling' everyone talks about, I would somehow end up finding a person who I really do love and care for."

John wanted to scream. Naveen didn't understand how romance works, but the way he words his feelings were so genuine, from the heart. It feels like an invisible hug wrapping around his heart, squeezing it in rhythm to his growing heartbeats. If this was his form of confessing, it's tugging at his heartstrings. "You are right about wanting to find people in your life you want to spend your days with. It's an amazing feeling to know that you've found the person to be with, knowing that from every day forth, you'll get to see their face when you wake up and before you sleep. You talk to them for hours on end, joking and laughing and hearing that charming laugh you fall in love with every time. You have serious discussions that, when you pull through, help you connect with them even more and reach a better understanding of each other. Little acts of love you give each other, from making their favorite meal to going on walks, to doing super fun stuff like this.."

John drifts off, suddenly out of breath. He looks to see if Naveen is staring, which turns out he is. He blushes with embarrassment.

"You mean the feeling I get when I hear you talk like this every time we're together?" Naveen grins slyly. "I would do anything for that to happen." He purses his lips for a moment, thinking, then grins even wider.

"You know what? I would do that right now."

"Do what?" John blinks, his face flushed. He watches as Naveen pulls in his legs from the docks and gets on one knee, facing him. He holds out one hand.

"John Smith, I love being with you with all my being. You've captured my heart, and in return, I want to give you my all as I make this the greatest moment in our long-lasting friendship, now about to become something even greater. 

"Will you be my boyfriend, and promise me more days like this to come?"

Tears are forming along John's eyes as he stares at Naveen, then to his outreached hand, then back to his face. There were tears forming in his eyes too. The moment feels so surreal, too perfect to happen in real life. It was a confession that's mainly told in fiction, and yet it happened, the words hanging in the air. Never had John felt happier. From the looks of it, neither has Naveen. Hopefully more days like this will happen in their future.

It's a promise worth keeping.

John took Naveen's hand, firmly grasping it as he did. They're both crying now, glad that the pact has been made. Naveen pulls John as they both stand up, then embraces him in a tight, warming hug. John hugs back, hot tears streaming down his face as he grins like an idiot. A really happy idiot who became his best friend's boyfriend. 

He feels a tickle as Naveen laughs into his shoulder, tears rolling from his eyes. He's really happy too. They stand like that for the rest of the sunset, two happy boyfriends, taking in the warmth of the world around them as they embraced for what could've been an eternity. 

When the last rays of sunlight vanish and the sky becomes a cool evening blue, the two pull away, throw on their shirts, and gather up their things as they walk away from the pier. They're both quiet, content with the soothing night. John briefly glances at Naveen, who is relaxed as well. He grabs Naveen's hand, overlapping their fingers. A few moments later, Naveen closes his hand. Together they walk, satisfied, into the night. The days that follow will be their happiest, and that's the best they could ever ask for, knowing that days just like this are promised to come.


End file.
